The paper analyzes the example of New Belgrade - the pivotal point of the communist propaganda during 1960s. Today, its identity is changing from the Modernist cocoon to the advanced landscape of globalization, reflecting a new power of capital.

Abstract

(RE)SYMBOLIZING THE MODERN HERITAGE: A NEW IDENTITY FOR A PROSPEROUS FUTURE?

Born on the deserted marshlands between the historical cores of Belgrade and Zemun, New Belgrade represented a clear political statement of the new post-war Yugoslav society, which expressed the preferred identity, launched by the new political Úlite. Therefore, this offspring of the Athens Charter and the huge political ambitions of President Tito, followed the ritual pattern well known for centuries, playing an important role in a symbolical initiation of the newly established communist system.However, after decades of more or less successful existence, this Modern (anti)utopia became a scene for a new experiment of the 21st century - the (re)symbolization of the modernist vocabulary, this time caused by the strong global forces. The political changes and openness to the new trends of economy caused an interesting process which implanted new activities and users into the modernist grid. Administrative, financial, trade and housing activities remained but, due to the excellent accessibility of these urban sections, good infrastructure and available sites for large development projects, New Belgrade has become a very attractive area for local and foreign investors. Consequently, the application of new 'global rules' has caused numerous changes which turned New Belgrade into a node of connection and regional integration, leaving behind some unsolved problems of spatial, social and economical disintegration.

Keywords

identity, globalization, transformation, propaganda, branding

Case Study presented on the ISOCARP Congress 2006: Cities between Integration and Disintegration